So You Want to Clean Your Carpet Yourself

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Many Bay Area residents are understandably reluctant to have an unknown carpet cleaner in their home during the current COVID-19 lockdown. One option for carpet cleaning during the coronavirus shelter-in-place is to clean your carpet yourself. DIY Carpet Cleaning.

very low moisture carpet cleaning is better

My first advice is don’t. Call a pro. Sure you can rent a Rug Doctor, but it’s like power washing your patio with a garden hose. Just not as powerful. Call a pro that uses very low moisture (VLM) carpet cleaning (like Advanced Dry Carpet Care: (707) 575-0114). If you can’t find a VLM cleaner in your area, employ a cleaner that uses hot water extraction (HWE), also known as the truck-mount system. This is the method used by Stanley Steemer, Coit and most smaller carpet cleaning pros. It’s a traditional, common method for carpet cleaning, though not the best.

But if your budget or health concerns won’t allow for calling a pro, follow these guidelines for safe and effective DIY carpet cleaning.

Gather what you’ll need:

  • Vacuum cleaner
  • Carpet extraction cleaning machine (ex. Rug Doctor)
  • Carpet cleaning detergent
  • Hot water
  • Fans
No spots return with our carpet cleaning methods

Do it right and you can see dramatic results!

Ready? Here’s a step-by-step guide for effectively cleaning your carpet yourself:

  1. Vacuum the carpet thoroughly while it’s dry. Once soil is wet, it is more difficult to extract.
  2. Pre-treat spots and traffic lanes with detergent and water mix. Brush the solution into the carpet and allow 10-15 minutes dwell time.
  3. While you’re waiting, mix detergent and hot water and pour into the machine.
  4. Use the machine according to its instructions to apply cleaning solution and extract.
  5. Open windows and point fans at the carpet, especially the traffic lanes.
  6. If spots remain, try cleaning them with a stronger detergent, like Folex. For a simple 3-Step Spot Cleaning video and instructions, go to: advanceddry.com/spot/
  7. Keep everyone off the carpet until it’s dry. This includes pets. If you can’t wait, wear clean socks to avoid re-soiling.
  8. Your carpet should be dry within 24 hours. If it takes longer than 48 hours, definitely call a pro. Mildew is forming and mold may follow, which will ruin your carpet.

Avoid common mistakes:

home carpet steam cleaners
  • Avoid using a detergent that is not designed for carpet. You may get the dirt out, but not the suds. The remaining sticky residue will result in re-soiling.
  • Avoid using too much water. Some people, seeing that one pass does not get the carpet clean, go over it a second and third time. These machines add water/solution, but do not extract much. More passes leaves more water and the risk of mildew and mold.
  • Don’t bother with the home models from Bissel, Hoover, etc. They squirt water/solution on to the carpet but have weak extraction. Weak jets + weak suction means you’ve only added water and soap to dirty carpet.

Call or Text for Professional Carpet & Rug Cleaning

(707) 575-0114

See also:

Spot Cleaning Mistakes

Three Ways to Wreck Your Carpet

Upholstery Cleaning for Pets

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upholstery cleaning for pets dogs cats urine odorA man called me from Santa Rosa with a special need. He has ten large wool rugs which he takes out to the Mojave Desert where he sets up a post-apocalyptic bar. He lays the rugs down on the desert floor so people didn’t have to walk on the sand. These rugs fill up with sand, especially since they would get three or four sand storms every season. He was wondering what would be the best method for getting the sand out of the rugs. He explained the rugs were not expensive and he didn’t want to spend money on it. He didn’t want my services, just my advice.

Upholstery Cleaning for Pets – Removing Urine Odor

That’s an unusual request. What I get more often goes something like this: “my dog had an accident on the sofa and I can’t to get the pee stain or urine odor out of the sofa. Can you help?” Pet vomit is another common problem for upholstery. We can’t blame the dog for everything. They’re not the ones spilling beer and popcorn on the sofa.

Get a free quote on carpet or upholstery cleaning for petsOf course, we’re happy to help. Dogs and cats bring us most of our business. For sofas, love seats and sectional sofas that have been loved on my a dog or a cat, we use hot water extraction (aka steam cleaning) and a proven formula that includes an enzyme, which neutralizes organic matter and knocks down odor. In some cases, we’re able to remove the stain that can result from pet urine or vomit. We’re also able to remove the baking soda or detergent pet owners have added to their upholstery, trying to mitigate the damage.

Besides upholstery cleaning for pets, we also provide pet odor removal for area rugs and carpets using our unique low moisture Teri-Towel system (Read More) with a formula that includes an enzyme carpet cleaning treatment. We serve the dogs and cats of Petaluma, Santa Rosa and Sonoma County, but we also go to Marin County and San Francisco. After all, there are more dogs in San Francisco than children (Source: KQED) and these dogs live like sultans!

Got a question? We’re happy to provide:

Free Advice on Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning for Pets
(707) 575-0114
or Contact Us

Back to the guy with the post-apocalyptic bar in the Mohave Desert, I recommended the old-fashioned method, which my mother taught me. Hang the rugs on a clothes line and beat them with a broom handle. There are fancy machines, but there’s not much that beats a good rug beating. No water, no mess. Just make sure you’re standing upwind.

Wow, the things we put our rugs through!

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Avoid This: Carpet Wet All Week

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Here’s a note I read on Nextdoor.com

I used XXXXXXX (name omitted) Steam Clean. Will NOT use them again. They left our carpet waaaaay too wet. They came on a Monday, it was still damp on Friday morning. We also had a strange smell from our master bedroom. The owner came out Thursday that week (I called Wednesday afternoon to report wet floor) and proceeded to tell me this was “dormant odor” that he was happy to clean it again but didnt think it would resolve anything. When I pointed out the dampness still, he just said it felt like “residue” to him. A worker came the next morning, Friday, and checked for moisture with a tool. Sure enough, moisture!!!! Grrrrr! The worker cleaned it using special treatment that they used in houses during the Mendocino Fire. This was week before last. There is still a faint smell in our bedroom. I’m beyond irritated. I have had carpets cleaned 1x to 2x a year.. This is the FIRST time I have ever had an issue. The owner told me I must have spilled milk as he was saying he could smell the odor. I have a non-verbal 10yr old. I am VERY cautious about food and drink. We do not drink milk. The worker that came out told me his superviors TOLD HIM to clean it again and go over it for dryness/leave fans/etc because the last time it was too wet!!! Couldn’t believe it! The worker told me knew what the odor was. NOT dormant odor. He said “it is the same musty smell you get when you leave clothes in the washer too long. This happened because the carpets had too much moisture.” I have not had this experience but he DID tell me it was NOT dormant odor. Would NOT recommend them. I told the owner I regret calling them for service as now I have this issue and may have to REPLACE carpet.

My Response

Before you replace the carpet, I recommend pulling up the carpet and pad and letting it dry underneath. If there is mold it can be treated there. A restoration service can do this for you. The carpet cleaner should pay for it. That’s why they carry insurance.

I’ve heard many horror stories like this.This is one of the risks of the traditional truck-mount steam cleaning system. Over-wetting can happen, especially when the cleaning tech in inexperienced.

For future reference, there is a better way to clean carpet. A very low moisture (VLM) system such as the one I use keeps the cleaning solution on the carpet where the soil is. Instead of jetting more water into the carpet to agitate the soil loose, we use a terry-towel pad and an oscillating machine to agitate and extract the solution and soil. The carpet backing and pad remains dry throughout the process. Carpet is dry in 2 hours and spots don’t return (another problem with the traditional method). No fans are needed even in wet weather.
You can see demonstration videos on my website. https://www.advanceddry.com/how-we-clean-your-carpet/